Photo: Leigh Loftus
I know there is an expression out there that says that hindsight is 20/20, but I don’t really believe it. I think that as time goes on, it’s easy to think we would have done certain things differently, but there is no way of knowing, if given the opportunity to go back in time, we really would have or not.
Some people might think that they have clearer vision when looking at the past than at the present, but I, for one, know that I romanticize the past. For example, when I was in high school I was as miserable as your average adolescent female whose parents were SO UNFAIR and whose friends criticized each other and stole each others boyfriends. Yet, I look back on high school quite fondly as a blur of green and yellow varsity jackets, sneaking out the doors in the band hallway to go out to lunch and ultra-competitive floor hockey games during gym class.
I also look back on the years that I lived in New York quite fondly, even though when I was there I didn’t particularly like my life all that much. Despite the long hours that I worked and the social life that I was never quite so thrilled with, a few great memories stand out and they all involved apples. Three years ago, I visited my brother during his last year at Ithaca College and we went to an apple festival in town even though it rained all day.
We didn’t actually buy any apples – just cider and donuts. We ate dinners out, drank beers in crowded bars and bought Halloween Oreos from the grocery store (arguably the highlight of the season each year. When you don’t eat a lot of packaged foods there is something sinful about neon orange icing in a cookie). Before I left to get on the tiny plane that would fly me from Syracuse to New York City, I whipped up a batch of apple walnut muffins, but in hindsight, if I could have done things differently, I would have made this apple crisp.
The perfect combination of sweet + tart, this homemade apple crisp is exactly the kind of dessert you want to eat on a fall night with the windows open…and maybe breakfast the next day, too.
Photo: Leigh Loftus
Apple Crisp
What You Need:
4 medium tart apples, sliced (4 cups)
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup quick-cooking or old-fashioned oats
1/3 cup butter or margarine, softened
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Whipped cream or ice cream, if desired
How-To:
Heat oven to 375ºF. Grease bottom and sides of 8-inch square pan with shortening. Spread apples in pan. In medium bowl, stir remaining ingredients except cream until well mixed; sprinkle over apples.
Bake about 30 minutes or until topping is golden brown and apples are tender when pierced with a fork. Serve warm with cream.
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59 Comments
Caroline
November 8, 2011 at 4:55 pmApple crisp is one of my favorite desserts, and yours looks divine, Maris! Perfect for these chilly nights ahead. 🙂
Shannon @ Healthiful Balance
October 13, 2011 at 9:42 amMhmm, delicious! Perfect for the Fall season! 😀
Erin @ The Speckled Palate
October 12, 2011 at 12:04 amMy goodness, Maris. This apple crisp sounds incredible and just the perfect thing for a fall day. I’ve never been to an apple festival (though I have been to a blueberry one), and I can definitely agree with you on the hindsight thing and making something different… However, this recipe sounds a LOT better than the blueberry one I tried. 😉
Thanks for sharing! I’ll have to whip some of this up the next time I see some fantastic looking apples at one of the local produce stands.
Alana D
October 11, 2011 at 12:04 pmPerfect for fall in chicago
Courtney
October 10, 2011 at 8:02 pmI really need to make this! I keep promising my hubby – he really wants that stuff sold in the store but I can’t heart buying it.
Greg
October 10, 2011 at 8:47 amOh I missed this one. Such a great fall treat.
Baking Serendipity
October 9, 2011 at 10:02 pmApple crisps are one of my favorite fall treats. Yours look delicious 🙂 And I definitely agree with your hindsight thoughts…made me think on good memories of my own.
Alison @ Ingredients, Inc.
October 9, 2011 at 3:43 pmcan’t wait to try this! Missed you this weekend 🙁 hope you had a good one!
Junia @ Mis Pensamientos
October 9, 2011 at 12:40 pmi love applecrisp~ it always is so good with vanilla icecream. and i know what u mean. i look back at some times in my life, especially my adolescence and i cringe. it wasn’t pretty all the time!
Susan
October 8, 2011 at 11:44 amI have to get to the farmers market and bring home a small bushel of apples. Apple crisp is an all-time favorite. It’s so interesting to reflect back on times that were bittersweet. Hopefully, the sweet outweighs the bitter 🙂
Lauren@LittleYellowKitchen
October 8, 2011 at 11:17 amChrissy and I were debating whether to make a pear or apple crisp today. Well, after seeing this, I think it’s safe to say we decided on apples! Mmmm 🙂
Lauren at Keep It Sweet
October 8, 2011 at 10:03 amI definitely know what you mean about looking back on something and being able to see mostly good memories. Interesting how that works! This apple crisp looks delicious.
Lisa
October 8, 2011 at 3:04 amI romanticize the past (esp HS) too. Push aside the friend’s backstabbing and the teacher threatening to fail me if I was late to her class one more time – for the free, wild, innocent days and nights of discovery, first love, breaking the rules etc. The ‘what if’s’ pepper me during rough times.
Perfect amount of delicious apple crisp, and seriously, who doesn’t love an apple crisp? To this day, I have yet to meet that person. You perfectly captured the past, and Fall in general, with this post.
Caroline
October 7, 2011 at 4:14 pmSounds like you and your brother had such a wonderful time together. I have two older brothers and love hanging out with them when I have the chance…it’s so much harder now that we’re all older. This apple crisp looks deeeelicious!
Sarah
October 7, 2011 at 2:40 pmI overanalyze the past (and, heck, the present too). And even in my critical 20-20 view of it, I still find so many flaws and things I would have done differently. It’s a real challenge to accept that things are they way they are and just move on. But I can mostly do it.
Sook
October 7, 2011 at 2:02 pmI love apple crisp! Looks so great!
Lynne @ 365 Days of Baking
October 7, 2011 at 11:14 amThere’s just something so homey and comfortable about apple crisp. And I always have to have a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream melting over the top.
Emma
October 6, 2011 at 2:02 pmI always get excited when Cortland apples begin appearing in the grocery stores. I could live off of those (and chocolate of course) and be quite happy!
Selective memory, or altered perception of reality I guess, is what makes reading memoirs so intriguing. It’s your life – why not put a spin on it? That’s what your mind does in the moment, too, just differently.
At any rate, it allows me to look back on all those high school jack-asses, and not have any negative feelings toward them any longer:)
Rachel @ The Avid Appetite
October 6, 2011 at 1:10 pmOh how I love apple crisp! I hoping to do some apple picking this weekend so that I can make this (among many other appley desserts!)!
Geni
October 6, 2011 at 1:02 pmI think we all romanticize the past. Sometimes, it gets us through so that we imagine at one point we were really happy and satisfied. Your crisp looks superb. So yummy and it’s finally getting around to being Fall here in So. Cal. Can’t wait to make this recipe.
Rachel
October 6, 2011 at 11:50 amYour stories about romanticizing the past are very familiar. I definitely remember college as being much more fun than it really was for me, especially when I’m telling other people about it. I guess hindsight is more like an air brush to the past.
There will be no regrets about apple crisp this year! I will make at least one and it will probably be this one!
Kelly
October 6, 2011 at 9:57 amI think that’s what’s interesting about our memory of the past, it’s never quite as accurate as we might think. I always think it’s interesting in particular when I read articles about siblings and how differently they often view the same childhood.
I always feel extra nostalgic in the fall and apples are definitely a big part. I love them so much I had to do an apple roundup post the other day and it made me re-stumble upon some chili you had made with apples that sounded absolutely fantastic so I just had to feature it. Yum!
Kay
October 6, 2011 at 9:05 amGreat story- I love apple season!
Three-Cookies
October 6, 2011 at 8:36 amEasy and delicious. BTW did you write an article for Care2- or is it a namesake?
lisa {smart food and fit}
October 6, 2011 at 8:18 amI couldnt agree more! I can’t wait to go apple picking w/ my boys. Sweet and tart apples are the best, can’t wait to bake my first apple crisp!
yummychunklet
October 6, 2011 at 8:17 amWhat a great post and dish! Thanks for sharing!
alyssa - fashion fitness foodie
October 6, 2011 at 6:53 amgotta use up all of the apples i picked!! looks delicious.
Heather @girlichef
October 6, 2011 at 6:05 amWell, at least we can look to the future and plan, huh? This crisp sounds wonderful and really, apples and fall are just one of my favorite combos. I think it’s kind of like the whole “time heals” saying. It also puts on rose colored glasses.
MegSmith @ Cooking.In.College
October 6, 2011 at 1:29 amThis was a really nice post to read. I sometimes look back at things and think about them differently than they actually happened too. (Especially highschool!)
This crisp looks and sounds AMAZING!
Molly
October 5, 2011 at 10:09 pmapple crisp for breakfast sounds genius – done and done. I always struggle with the crisp to fruit ratio, though… seems like I always want more crisp. Will give this recipe a try!
Elle
October 5, 2011 at 9:32 pmMaris this looks so good. I can almost smell it!
thatShortChick
October 5, 2011 at 7:50 pmlooove apple crisp, I’ll be bookmarking this!
EA-The Spicy RD
October 5, 2011 at 7:24 pmGreat crisp! We are having stormy weather here in San Diego today-perfect weather for an apple crisp! Fun to hear your memories of high school. I have good ones too 🙂
Erica
October 5, 2011 at 5:41 pmSo true! Especially about high school! Crisp is one of my fav desserts! Looks awesome!
Candace
October 5, 2011 at 5:24 pmThis looks delicious! It is crisp and cold and the leaves are blowing around outside. Perfect weather for an apple crisp!
Courtney
October 5, 2011 at 4:48 pmYep, I think we’re doing this tonight! Mmmmm…
Katrina @ In Katrina's Kitchen
October 5, 2011 at 4:30 pmI couldn’t agree more! And can I have a bowl please? Mmm
Lisa from Lisas Yarns
October 5, 2011 at 4:24 pmI, too, romanticize the past – well, some parts of my past. Some parts I see very vividly, just as they were.
I adore apple crisp. or any fruit crisp really! I love the tart & sweet mixture and the texture of the crisp crumbles. Mmmm
bellini
October 5, 2011 at 4:11 pmI love apple crisp even as a breakfast food.
Kathryn
October 5, 2011 at 4:11 pmIt’s amazing how we selectively remember stuff isn’t it?
I love a good apple crisp and this looks like a particularly delicious version!
Tara @ Chip Chip Hooray
October 5, 2011 at 4:10 pmThis looks so, so perfect. I’ll be honest–I probably will sit on my couch and eat this straight from the 8×8 pan after one of those “Hindsight is 20/20” days at work.
T.W. Barritt at Culinary Types
October 5, 2011 at 3:42 pmI love apple crisp – it is now PERFECT apple crisp weather! And now you’ve got me wondering where I can find some of those Halloween Oreos!
Laura @ SweetSavoryPlanet
October 5, 2011 at 3:35 pmI got my favorite crisp recipe from a children’s cookbook and it is almost the same as yours, the spices are a bit different and there are optional nuts. I have always been a fan of children’s books and I guess their cookbooks are no different. Thanks for sharing.
Averie @ Love Veggies and Yoga
October 5, 2011 at 3:04 pmI love crisps and crumbles of all kinds!
Shari @ The Daily Dish
October 5, 2011 at 3:01 pmYum! I’ve always wanted to make my own apple crisp. Yours looks great! 🙂
claire @ the realistic nutritionist
October 5, 2011 at 3:00 pmI loved this post, it’s SO GOOD. And thoughtful. and true.
Plus, that apple crisp looks perfect.
Rachel @ Not Rachael Ray
October 5, 2011 at 2:02 pmApple crisp is one of my all time favorite foods. This looks very similar to the recipe I have from my mom–delicious!
sarah
October 5, 2011 at 1:57 pmMMM. I vowed to make more apple things this year. This one looks really good!
Shaina
October 5, 2011 at 1:40 pmApple crisp is one of my favorite ways to enjoy the fall harvest. It just feels like home. Love this, Maris!
amy @ fearless homemaker
October 5, 2011 at 1:33 pmlooks just delicious!
Caitlyn
October 5, 2011 at 1:22 pmDo you know that I was JUST looking for a dessert to make for a family dinner this Friday? It’s the perfect welcome to fall… I’ll probably do some vanilla bean ice cream and warm cider to go with it!
Barbara
October 5, 2011 at 1:11 pmI am definitely going to try this – sounds yummy.
Nami | Just One Cookbook
October 5, 2011 at 12:28 pmHow easy and delicious! Last year before I started blogging, my apple season was very boring….but this year thanks to blog hopping, I get to learn how to prepare this kind of delicious apple desserts… I’m so excited. Already bookmarked and I need to buy apples next!
Nikki
October 5, 2011 at 12:27 pmHa I totally do the same thing and I didn’t even realize it. Nice little reminder there. Also the crisp looks so easy and delicious. Definitely on my list!
brandi
October 5, 2011 at 12:25 pmso excited for apple season 🙂 this crisp looks great!
I’m excited to meet you this weekend in Nashville!
Melissa@IWasBornToCook
October 5, 2011 at 12:22 pmNice and easy, love it! I made a pretty easy one myself recently. Frank LOVED it so much – it’s nice that simple things can be so satisfying and enjoyable 🙂
Sukaina
October 5, 2011 at 12:21 pmI don’t have any regrets in pfe either. I look back at my past fondly- even though at that particular time, I may have felt differently! I love love apple crisp (we call it a crumble) and love to serve it piping hot with cold custard. Looks great.
Carrie
October 5, 2011 at 12:21 pmI’m stocked to the brim with apples this season… and I have yet to make an apple crisp. It is so simple but the best apple dessert around! I think this will be made for Sunday dinner.
Daryl (mom)
October 5, 2011 at 12:20 pmLooks easy enough even for me and quite delicious too!